After a successful initial test of its rotors, a NASA helicopter stationed on Mars could make its first flight over the Red Planet in two days, according to the US space agency. According to NASA, the four-pound (1.8kg) Ingenuity helicopter will take off from Mars' Jezero Crater on Sunday at 10:54pm US Eastern Time (8:24 am IST) and hover 10 feet (3 meters) above the surface for a half-minute, marking the first-ever attempt at powered, operated flight on another planet.
On Sunday, the idea is for it to climb vertically, hover, and rotate for 30 seconds to photograph the Perseverance rover, which landed on Mars on February 18 with the helicopter attached to its underside.
The Ingenuity would then be lowered down to the ground.
It takes 15 minutes to travel signals from Earth to Mars, but also due to the demanding environment on the distant planet, the flight is autonomous, preprogrammed onto the aircraft.
MiMi Aung, Ingenuity Project Manager, said: "It is not only difficult for Mars when you land, but when you also try to take off of it and fly around."
She said it's much less serious than earth, but the pressure of the earth's atmosphere is less than one percent on the surface.
"Gather those things together and you have a vehicle that requires that every piece of information is correct," Aung said.
Aung said today a second test would take place with high-speed rotors.
She said, mentioning possible winds, that "the only uncertainty is Mars' real environment."
NASA calls the unprecedented operation of the helicopter a very risky one but states that it could collect invaluable data on Mars.
Over a period of one month, NASA plans five flights, each successively tougher.
*Photo credit-NASA
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